Tracking national portfolios and assessing results

1. Tracking national portfolios and assessing results Sub-regional Workshop for GEF Focal Points in Latin America Sao Paulo, Brazil, 15-16 October 2007

2. Presentation Outline • GEF and the Evaluation Office • Monitoring & Evaluation • Role of Focal Points in M&E • Tracking the Portfolio: Tools & Approaches • GEF National Coordination – Lessons Learned from Bolivia, China, Colombia, Poland and Uganda • Monitoring: Issues for Discussion • Evaluation: Issues for Discussion

3. IAs/EAs UNDP Donor Replenishment Group Evaluation Office UNEP CBD STAP WB UNFCC Assembly ADB POPs NGOs AfDB Council CCD EBRD CEO/Chair GEF Secretariat FAO Multilateral Fund of Montreal Protocol IDB IFAD International Waters UNIDO

4. The M & E pyramid…

5. Monitoring&Evaluation Policy • Purpose of M&E in the GEF: • Promote learning, feedback and knowledge sharing as basis for decision making on all levels • Promote accountability: results, effectiveness, processes and performance • Clarifies roles and responsibilities • Includes minimum standards for project M&E • Further Information: Monitoring and Evaluation Policy (2006) - www.thegef.org, under Evaluation Office, under Policies and Procedures

6. Key roles & responsibilities in M&E

7. GEF Evaluation OfficeWork Program FY07-10 FY07-08 • Small Grants Programme Evaluation • Impact Evaluations leading to Annual Report on Impact • Capacity Development Evaluation • 4 Country Portfolio Evaluations in Africa + 2 new CPEs • Catalytic Role of the GEF • RAF mid-term review • Annual Performance Report • Start-up of GEF Focal Areas evaluations • Evaluation of Partnership and umbrella projects FY09-10 • Country Portfolio Evaluations • Annual Performance Report • Annual Impact Report • Six Focal Area evaluations • Fourth Overall Performance Study

8. What is Monitoring & Evaluation? 2 (2) • Monitoring provides management with a basis for decision making on progress and GEF with information on results. This involves: • Ongoing, systematic gathering of qualitative and quantitative information to track progress on project outcomes & outputs • Identification of implementation issues and propose actions to solve these • Evaluation provides lessons learned and recommendations for future projects, polices and portfolios. This involves: • Periodic assessment of results (i.e. outputs, outcomes and impact) according to the criteria of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability

9. Role of GEF Focal Point in M&E Role depends on country specific circumstances….. What are some of the potential roles and responsibilities in M&E? Keeping track of GEF support at the national level Promoting use of evaluation recommendations and lessons learned, particularly in new project proposals Supporting and ensuring dissemination of GEF M&E information Keeping stakeholders informed and consulted in plans, implementation and results of country GEF M&E activities Assisting the Evaluation Office, as the first point of entry into a country, during evaluations: identifying major relevant stakeholders, coordinating meetings, assisting with agendas – and coordinating country responses to these evaluations Other examples?

10. Tracking the Portfolio: Tools and Approaches M & E of the portfolio: what are some experiences? Creating a simple tracking system for GEF projects (see slide 12). Including the GEF Support in national tracking system of international grants/loans. Reporting GEF achievements against national development goals and objectives (MDGs? Reporting to Conventions?) Establishing a close collaboration with GEF Agencies M&E officer and projects managers. Exchanging experiences and information in workshops – both sub-regional and national. Supporting annual workshops to discuss project implementation, experiences and lessons and results with key GEF players in the country.

11. Available information sources: • Project Implementation Reports produced annually by the projects and GEF Agencies (self assessments) • Supervision reports from GEF Agencies • Project evaluations: mid-term and final (independent) • National development goals tracking systems • Knowledge exchange during workshops(national coordination committees, with other focal points, annual workshops with implementing / executing agencies, other actors in the field – NGOs, CBOs etc) • Information from established focal area task forces, networks, environmental assessments and other relevant activities. • Evaluations conducted by GEF-EO and independent evaluation offices of GEF Agencies

12. Tracking the Portfolio - an example Portfolio Tracking System – • Project level data: • Project name and GEF ID (and your own ID number) • Focal area (strategic priority) • GEF Agency • National Executing Agency • Financial information: GEF grant (including preparatory funding, allocations from RAF) and cofinancing (including sources) • Project cycle dates (entry into pipeline, PPG, Council approval, CEO Endorsement, start up, completion: proposed and actual) • Objective(s) • Expected Outcome(s) • Expected contribution to GEF 4 targets • Project Status description (updated at least twice a year) • Ratings: implementation progress and likelihood of achieving objectives • Once completed: actual achievements and lessons learned • Project documents • Contact person in project and with GEF Agency • This information feeds into the progress of overall environmental achievements at higher levels, namely - the national targets, the MDGs and the GEF strategic targets. Keep it simple and only collect and record information that will be used!

13. Tracking the portfolio: Why is it useful? (1) • To have an overall overview of the GEF portfolio currently under implementation in the country • For national coordination of the GEF portfolio: between ministries, implementing and executing agencies, civil society etcetera • To feed into national decision making on GEF support • Resource Allocation Framework: setting of priorities • Project endorsements • Planning for future support • To keep track of environmental achievements towards national targets, the MDGs and the GEF strategic targets and mandate • For harmonization purposes: preventing overlap between donors, agencies, government policies and so on

14. Tracking the portfolio: Why is it useful? (2) • To be informed of implementation progress of projects (start, end, major events, delays) • To be able to address common problems – reoccurring in the portfolio • To resolve implementation issues (related to national scope)? • To integrate lessons learned, disseminate valuable experience and give recommendations in future work/ project proposals • To act as the central hub for GEF country information across all agencies • To support the GEF portfolio among stakeholders and ministries • Other?

15. GEF National Coordination – Lessons Learned from Bolivia, China, Colombia, Poland and Uganda ( October 2005) Good practice: • Inviting national project executing agencies to make presentations to coordination committee meetings (including project visits and reports from ongoing projects) • Regular access to the GEF Agencies monitoring and post-completion projects evaluation reports enables feedback on project performance in future project proposals Lessons learned: • National coordination mechanisms involvement in monitoring efforts enhances national project ownership • Collaboration in monitoring efforts increase national accountability and also helps ensure that the objectives and progress made by projects reaches a much broader audience

16. Monitoring: Issues for discussion • How are the partners working together in monitoring? (Focal Point, Agency, project staff, technical ministry or department, beneficiaries…) • Who does what? How is information circulating? How can the Focal Point support GEF portfolio in national management and decision-making? • Further development of tools for tracking portfolios. • How are available tools used? • What type of information is required? How will the information be used? • Who should be involved in national knowledge sharing forum? And how?

17. Evaluation: Issues for discussion • What is the experience of country reviews of GEF portfolios? (Costa Rica, Philippines, Samoa) • How is planning, undertaking and sharing project evaluations working in your country? How can it be improved? • Project evaluations are conducted independently. How should Focal Points add value? • How can Focal Points support dissemination of evaluations and their use in new project design? • How can countries use lessons learned from GEF corporate evaluations?

18. More information…. • The GEF M&E Policy: www.thegef.org, under Evaluation Office, under Policies and Procedures • GEF corporate evaluations and lessons learned: www.thegef.org, under Evaluation Office, under Publication or Ongoing Evaluations • Project evaluations (161 terminal evaluations): www.thegef.org, under Project Database, for search click on Evaluation Documents • Email contact: gefevaluation@theGEF.org